Leon de Villiers was born op 25 July 1960 in Pretoria. He matriculated at Hercules High School in the same city, after which he studied at the University of Pretoria. He completed a BA and then a BA Honours Degree in Political Science and International Politics. He also completed a Diploma in Higher Education at the same university.

After graduation, he became a history teacher, but in 1993 he decided to become a full time writer. His first youth novel, Aliens en engele, was published in 1996 by Tafelberg. He was awarded the Sanlam Debut Prize, the Scheepers Prize for Youth Literature and the M.E.R. Prize for his second novel, Die pro, which was published in 1997.